Mastering the American Accent with Online Audio (Barron's Foreign Language Guides)

This book is well-structured and easy to follow. The practical exercises effectively target intonation and stress in American pronunciation. The online audio materials are easily accessible and greatly enhance the learning experience.Despite some negative reviews about audio access, I had no issues at all. Overall, it’s an excellent resource for anyone looking to improve their American accent. Highly recommended!

Mastering the American Accent es una herramienta increíblemente útil para quienes buscan mejorar su pronunciación en inglés. El enfoque detallado en la fonética, la entonación y el ritmo del habla americana hace que sea un recurso valioso tanto para estudiantes como para profesionales. La inclusión de audio en línea permite practicar de manera efectiva y comparar la pronunciación con hablantes nativos. Las explicaciones son claras y fáciles de seguir, lo que facilita el aprendizaje progresivo. Sin duda, un libro imprescindible para quienes desean hablar inglés con mayor fluidez y confianza.

I get so tired of bad reviews by people who don't bother to read the directions and, instead, complain that no CDs are included. No, they're not, because most computers don't come with CD players anymore. That's why the author has kindly put all 390 audio files ON THE WEBSITE FOR DOWNLOADING to your computer, phone, tablet, or other digital device AND has put the directions for downloading on the inside of the front cover of the book. This is a great book. The audio files are clear with correct Standard American English accents and use both male and female voices. I only wish there were also audio tracks for the very last section of the book that covers problem words for native speakers of various languages. The first part of the book provides practice in vowel and consonant pronunciation, first at a basic level, and then in more depth. I found only two small errors in this section, which is in contrast to some popular books that consistently provide incorrect pronunciation guidelines in this area. The section on "The Various t Sounds of American English" in the "Problematic Consonants" chapter is second-to-none. The chapters on syllable stress, including some coverage of prefixes and suffixes, and word stress, including reduction, are also quite good, as is the section on problems specific to native speakers of various languages. There is also a brief section on intonation. Overall, I find this book to be a very useful book for introducing the intricacies of the American accent.

It was a used book in good condition.

The link to the downloadable audio files does not work. I found the audio files on Barron's website, although it was hard because there are no directions in the book. However, I cannot download them. There is no way you can download these files, although the book's cover says "includes downloadable audio of all exercises". This is false. You are supposed to log in into their website every time you want to listen them. You even have to create and account, but I did not pay for that! I wanted the Mp3 to listen them in my car or in the train, but it is impossible to download them. I even wrote to Barron's company asking about this, and they wrote me back saying that, "Unfortunately, we no longer allow the audio files to be downloaded" (Sept 18, 2021). So, they should not be selling these book anymore! They should make a new edition with another cover clarifying all this. Otherwise, they're lying to their customers. This experience was frustrating and annoying.I felt that they were trying to rip me off. They made me lost a lot of time. I'm returning the book.

It was a wonderful shopping experience, miles away, and the books were in good condition

I'm an American culture coach and I use this book with my clients. My clients are professionals who know their areas of expertise very well, but know they aren't always understood in the workplace. I like that the book has sections dedicated to specific native speakers of other languages. I also love that it not only covers consonants and vowels, but phrasing and where the stress falls in words and sentences (eg. the difference between "Are you at HOME?" and "Are YOU at home?"). It's a very thorough book, and with the downloadable audio tracks you can even work on your own, without a coach or instructor. Whenever an expat in the U.S. asks me how to reduce their accent, I direct them to this book.

This book has truly transformed my speech! I never imagined I could enhance my accent, but this book made it possible, and I did it!